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Joey Votto
Joseph Daniel Votto (born September 10, 1983 in Etobicoke, Toronto, Ontario) is a Major League Baseball first-baseman for the Cincinnati Reds. Early career Drafted out of high school (Richview Collegiate Institute) in the second round of the 2002 MLB amateur draft by the Reds (44th overall), Votto's first few professional seasons with the Reds' rookie-level affiliates were quiet. However, Votto burst onto the scene in , when he hit 26 doubles, 14 home runs, and sported a batting average of .302 with the Class A Dayton Dragons. He was promoted to Class A Advanced Potomac, and hit five more home runs in 20 games to end the season with 19. However, during Votto's campaign with Sarasota, his consistency declined. While he still hit 19 home runs, Votto struck out 122 times and his batting average dropped nearly 50 points to .256. He rebounded in 2006, batting .319 with 22 home runs and 24 stolen bases for Chattanooga. Votto spent the majority of the 2007 Spring Training with the Cincinnati Reds and made the 40 man roster but was sent down to the AAA Reds' affiliate Louisville Votto's season was the best of his career. Playing with Class AA Chattanooga, he improved his batting average to .319 and hit 46 doubles and 22 home runs. He led the Southern League in batting average and total bases and was third in the league in home runs and RBI. Votto was selected to play in the 2006 Futures Game on the World Team. He also played on both the Mid-Season and Post-Season Southern League All-Star teams, and was voted a minor league all-star by Baseball America. Votto culminated his season by winning the Southern League MVP award. Major leagues (2007–present) 2007-08 seasons Votto started off the 2007 season playing in Triple-A for the Louisville Bats. He was called up on September 1, 2007. He made his Major League debut on September 4, 2007, striking out against Guillermo Mota of the New York Mets. In his second major league at bat Votto hit his first career home run. Votto ended the season on a good note, going 2-for-4 with a home run and 5 RBI in the Cincinnati Reds' final game of the 2007 season. Beginning the season, Votto shared time platooning at first base with Scott Hatteberg, until Manager Dusty Baker began playing Votto as the Reds' starting first basemen in early April. On May 7, 2008, Votto hit three home runs in a game against the Chicago Cubs. He broke the Reds record for the most runs batted in by a rookie in a single season. The previous record was held by National Baseball Hall of Fame outfielder Frank Robinson with 83 RBI set in 1956. Votto drove in 84 runs during the 2008 season. He finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting to the Chicago Cubs' Geovany Soto.http://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/awards_2008.shtml#NLroy 2009 season Votto played for Canada in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. In Canada's first game against the United States, Votto had 4 hits in 5 at-bats. One of the 4 hits was a home run.http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/wbc/gamecenter/recap/WBSC_20090307_CAN@USA Votto began the season strong as he was the outright starter at first base. In the second game of the season, Votto went 3 for 5 with a homer and 3 RBI in the loss to the New York Mets. In the next game against the Mets, Votto had another homer and 4 RBI. He had a 6-game hitting streak near the end of April, closing out the opening month with a .346 batting average and 3 home runs. Votto opened May with a 5-game hitting streak. In a May matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals, Votto had two homers for 4 RBI. He finished out the month with 5 home runs and a .378 batting average. However, Votto was placed on the DL to open June after missing time in May due to personal issues. Prior to his return game during the 2009 season he indicated he had been suffering from depression and anxiety issues as a result of the death of his father in August 2008, and had sought treatment for them.Canoe:'I thought I was going to die' He had previously missed time because of dizziness related to an inner ear infection. Votto was named the National League Player of the Week for September 21–27, 2009, after hitting 10 doubles in a five-game span, a concentrated display not seen in 77 years. Hall of Fame outfielder Paul Waner did it for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1932.Votto earns NL Player of Week honor Despite missing 31 games overall, Votto finished the 2009 season among the National League leaders in batting average (.322), on-base percentage (.414), and slugging percentage (.567), and hit 25 home runs. 2010 Season Votto is hitting .324 with 73 RBI, 75 runs scored, and 27 homers as of July 30th, 2010, including a grand slam off of Tommy Hanson of the Atlanta Braves on May 20. Currently, he is first in the national league in batting average and home runs, as well as third in RBI, making him a triple crown threat. Votto was not initially voted to the 2010 All-Star game in Anaheim, California, but made the roster via online fan voting through the National League's Final Vote. Later that year, he won the National League MVP honors while batting .324, hitting in 113 RBI's, 37 homers, and led the Major Leagues in OBS with .424 and National League in Slugging with .600 and an OPS of 1.024. 2012 Season After getting off to a good start in the 2012 season, Votto was injured and spent a good period of time on the disabled list. He returned to the Cincinnati Reds in September 2012, rejoining a team that went on to clinch the best record in their division. Career Awards and Honors Major League: *2010 National League National League All-Star (Cincinnati) *2010 National League Most Valuable Player *2009 National League Player of the Week (Week of Sept. 21-27, 2009) (Cincinnati) *2008 Ernie Lombardi MVP Award (Cincinnati) Minor League: *2007 INT Post-Season All Star (Louisville) *2007 INT Mid-Season All Star (Louisville) *2007 INT Rookie of the Year (Louisville) *2007 Baseball America Triple-A All Star (Louisville) *2006 Baseball America Double-A All Star (Chattanooga) *2006 SOU Most Valuable Player (Chattanooga) *2006 SOU Mid-Season All Star (Chattanooga) *2006 SOU Post-Season All Star (Chattanooga) Career statistics See also * Major League Baseball hitters with three home runs in one game References External links *Joey Votto career statistics from MILB.com *Feature on 1B Joey Votto from MILB.com *Joey Votto News Category:All-Star Futures Game players Category:Canadian people of Italian descent Category:Cincinnati Reds players Category:Major League Baseball players from Canada Category:Louisville Bats players Category:Sarasota Reds players Category:Dayton Dragons players Category:2009 World Baseball Classic players of Canada Category:People from Etobicoke Category:People from Toronto Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:Baseball people from Ontario